ford: there is no policy of this government to give to the people's republic or to sell to the people's republic of china military equipment. i do not believe that we, the united states, should sell, give, or otherwise transfer military hardware to the people's republic of china or any other communist nation such as the soviet union and the like. >> governor carter. gov. carter: i would like to go back one moment to the previous question where mr. ford confuse the issue by trying to say we are shipping israel 40% of our aid. as a matter of fact during this current year we are shipping iran $7.5 billion worth of arms and also to saudi arabia $7.5 billion worth of arms. in 1975 we almost brought israel to their knees after the yom kippur war by the so-called reassessment of our relationship to israel. we tried to make israel the scapegoat for the problems in the middle east and it weakened our relationship and put a cloud on the total commitment that our people feel toward the israelis. there are to be a clear, unequivocal commitment without change to israel. in the far east we need to continue to be stron

carter: there is no policy of this government to give to the people's republic or to sell to the people's republic of china military equipment. i do not believe the united states should sell, give, or otherwise transfer military hardware to the people's republic of china or any other communist nation, such as the soviet union and the like. >> governor carter? gov. carter: i will go back to the previous question, where mr. ford i think confused the issue by saying we are shipping israel 40% of our aid. as a matter of fact, during this current year, we have shipped to iran about $7.5 billion of arms, and also to saudi arabia, $7.5 billion of arms. in 1975, we almost brought israel to their knees after the young couple were war. -- the yom kippur war. the relationship to israel, we decided to make israel the scapegoat in the middle east. this we get our relationship with israel a great deal and put a cloud on the total commitment our people feel toward the israelis. there are to be a clear, unequivocal agreement without change in the far east. i think we need to consider to continue being strong. i would cert

ford: there is no policy of this government to give to the people's republic, or to sell to the people's republic of china, military equipment. i do not believe that we, the united states, should sell, give or otherwise transfer military hardware to the people's republic of china, or any other communist nation, such as the soviet union and the like. ms. frederick: governor carter. mr. carter: well, i'd like to go back just one moment to the previous question, where mr. ford, i think, confused the issue by trying to say that we are shipping israel 40% of our aid. as a matter of fact, during this current year, we are shipping iran, or have contracted to ship to iran, about $7.5 billion worth of arms and also to saudi arabia, about $7.5 billion worth of arms. also in 1975, we almost brought , israel to their knees after the yom kippur war by the so-called reassessment of our relationship to israel. we in effect tried to make israel the scapegoat for the problems in the middle east. and this weakened our relationships with israel a great deal and put a cloud on the total commitment that our people feel toward

excellency, cindy committee of chinese communist party and of state counsel in the people's republic of china and for the first time, the world economic forum's. in thisee meeting. your questions here today is importance of china global engagementen. it is a critical roar that underwrote the title place injecting our shared future as such importance in a critical moment in your excellency, china has emerged over the last decade, chinese vice premier ding xuexiang, in addressing the challenges and the contributions, to the global economic it and it's undeniable braided china's commitment to sustainable development and ambitious goals, through green economy are impressive. in the initiatives have some potential during the trade and infrastructure in the connect continenceec and economic coast especially for the global south. in the meeting been a pivotal figure in china political landscape known for your strategic reason in region and education to advancing china. in these her career spanning several decades. it yes played a crucial role in shaping policies of economic report. and innovations a

the house to the congressional executive commission on the people's rights -- on the people's republic of china. the clerk: mr. smith of new jersey, co-chair. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announces the speaker's appointment, pursuant to 22 u.s.c. 276-l and the order of the house of january 3, 2025, of the following member on the part of the house to the british-american interparliamentary group. the clerk: mr. latta of ohio, chair. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announces the speaker's appointment, pursuant to 10-u.s.c. 9455-a, clause 10 of rule i and the order of the house of january 3, 2025, of the following members on the part of the house to the board of visitors to the united states air force academy. the clerk: mr. pfluger of texas. mr. crank of colorado. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announces the speaker's appointment, pursuant to 14 u.s.c. 1903-b and the order of house of january 3, 2025, of the following members on the part of the house to the board of visitors to the united states coast guard academy. the clerk: mrs. mcclain of michigan. mr. rutherford of florida. the

china. secondly, what is being done. i'll explain some of those things. but before that it's important to understand that we often take our competitor in the people's republicf china as one glob. thinking okay, maybe this is being done deliberately in terms of drugs. it's important for me too understand the long history the chinese people have had with opium and opioids wait before but we are dealing with. that was back all the way to the 1800s and the opioid wars. and their leader. and when you understand that you realize that what chinese people have dealt with is historic. but the embarrassment of those wars and others are pretty significant in the last long time. with that understanding, we went to the chinese and we were very clear we need to be there are criminal actors. criminal actors within the people's republic of china. the need to be held accounted for. that includes platforms we knewy taken off-line so many off-line and online platforms they've made arrests substances since my visit in june to beijing. some of those are used to produce fentanyl and meth. their controlled substances we have not yet controlled in our congress. all of this, we are

diplomatic relations with the people's republic of china. he championed human rights throughout the world. on the domestic side, the administration achieved achievements included a comprehensive energy program conducted by a new department of energy deregulation in energy, transportation, communication and finance. major educational programs under a new department of education and major environmental protection legislation, including the alaska national interest lands conservation act. now, let's go back to the scene. live on capitol hill. >> we go. we meet our. three. top. dog. cop. bob. cop. bob. cop. ready to stand, reado step, set, ready. ready face. ready to step. ready. to step. ready to step. forward. march. on. what? are. all. ready? step. by step. ready, step. ready. step. ready, step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready. step. ready

panama, since 2017 panama switched their relationships from taiwan to the prc, to the people's republic of chinahas made significant investments, particularly in port infrastructure at either end of the panama canal. and so, you know, i don't underestimate the challenge that china poses tohe the united stas in the region. i just think that this issue of animal sovereignty over the panama canal is existential for the e panamanians. this is critical for their own national identity. and i do use the word bullying because that is a tactic that unfortunately the president elect tends to want to use in trying to negotiate with international partners. and i think in this case it is going to be counterproductive.e and i think the better way of dealing with this is to deal with panama on a narrative of friendship and mutual cooperation here after all, panama has a government that is friendly to the united states. there president is a conservative. he is pro-u.s. the panamanians are generally pro-u.s. panama is critical to the migration issue which is so central to the united states and to the president e

he positioned america to succeed in strategic competition with the people's republic of china. by hamas. he helped defend israel from outrageous direct attacks by iran. and he's prevented the middle east from erupting into an all out regional war. and he just secured a cease-fire that will stop the fighting in gaza, serve more humanitarian aid to suffering palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families. in afghanistan, he ended america's longest war, one that spanned four presidents. and he refused to hand it over. and you can see it in their fierce love for our troops. i've seen it over and over again. i've been there, mr. president, when you've reached out to grieving families. i've seen you focus your entire being on a service member, a military spouse, or a military child. and by the way, nobody is going to stop joe biden from wading into a crowd of troops. he loves to grab service member's cell phone and call a stunned loved one, and of course everyone gets a self-ie. mr. president, that's just who you are. you pushed hard to make life easier for our tr

he positioned america to succeed in strategic competition with the people's republic of china. by hamas. he helped defend israel from outrageous direct attacks by iran. and he's prevented the middle east from erupting into an all-out regional war and he has just secured a ceasefire that will stop the fighting in gaza, surge more humanitarian aid to suffering palestinian civilians and reunite the hostages with their families. [applause] >> in afghanistan, he ended america's longest war, one that spanned 4 presidents and he refused to hand it over to one more. and he's always understood that the power of our example counts for more than the example of our power. president biden showed the world the strength and the resolve that only a democracy can muster. now, as i said, his leadership is rooted in his decades of expertise. president biden processes policy at graduate levels and i learned quickly that whenever i went over to the white house i needed to be prepared to di deep on key issues because inevitable the president will send a question your way and he'll ask something that

so central store, you guys cannot open it is so when the people's republic of china and instructional situation over the province. because for a look as a close and trying to lead dial up with the states. but this, the sewage linds about all that we are trying to hold. the principles of international communication hasn't joined into the united nations charter. the question was that way? right now? those transfers were formulated after world war 2 ended. she's move your wizard defeated. the german fashions many years to present defeat of japanese minute choice in the fall. so he's not sure who i do. so there's a good sense ahead solely those 2 things are easy to celebrate, at least to try it events the ages and the streamline your, your lovely war and world war 2 in your state as a way to send those for you. obviously, your biggest strength visible is a worrying the hardest together and the confidence those will be to the left to end mark and then since they have cool, awesome for 10 minutes. so it will serve as a reminder, all of us are for our children's room for kind for the younger

he positioned america to succeed in strategic competition with the people's republic of china. elped defend israel from outrageous direct attacks by iran. and he's prevented the middle east from erupting into an all out regional war. and he just secured a cease-fire that will stop the fighting in gaza, serve more humanitarian aid to suffering palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families. in afghanistan, he ended america's longest war, one that spanned four presidents. and he refused to hand it over. . the clerk: the honorable the speaker, house of representatives, sir, pursuant to the permission granted in clause 2-h of rule 2 of the u.s. house of representatives, the clerk received the following message from the secretary of the senate on january 16, 2025 at 2:30 p.m., appointments. commission on security and cooperation in europe, the helskinki commission. signed sincerely, kevin f. mccumber. the speaker pro tempore: the chair announcees appoint. and the order of the house of january 3, 2025 of the following members of the house to the permanent select c

committee of the chinese communist party and vice premier of the state council of the people's republic of china, for the first time to the world economic forum's annual meeting. your presence here today shows the importance of china's global engagement and the critical role china plays in shaping our shared future at such an important and critical moment. your excellency, china has emerged over the last decades as a key player in addressing global challenges and its contributions to global economic development are undeniable. china's commitment to sustainable development and its ambitious goals for a green economy are impressive. your multiple initiatives have the potential to improve global trade and infrastructure, connect continents further and forestall economic woes, especially for the global south. vice premier, you've been a pivotal figure in china's political landscape, known for your strategic region and dedication to advancing china's modernization. with a career spanning several decades, you have played a crucial role in shaping policies that drive economic reform, technological inno

19 $37.00 militaristic japan started up full scale invasion of china, the invading army was rapidly advancing towards the capital of the republic of china. of the dies, the city of nice being, leaving behind the burned down villages and thousands of the dead. on december 13th, the japanese occupied on z and states the real massacre for 6 weeks. the invaders exterminated the civilian population. they carried out mass executions, rates, women, and we're engaged in merciless robbery. ruthless confrontation of 2 officers of the imperial army. so c r e, my guy. and so yoshi no to gain particular notoriety. they competed with each other as to who would be the fastest to kill $100.00 chinese with us or this monstrous competition was widely reported in the japanese press. the non seeing massacre claim for lives of about 300000 people and became one of the largest crimes against humanity in the world history. after world war 2, manufactures advance of the address of the phase trial. however, the commander of the japanese army in the non seeing operation freezes, yasu eco, a socket was able to escape the responsibility due to the interfe

. >> the peoples republic of china, the chinese government, which i consider to be the defining threatf our generation. >> brian: okay. and the internet goes wild over one nfl player reading on the sidelines during the playoffs. they won by the way the eagles did. second hour of "fox & friends" starts right now. put your books down. we will take it from here. >> all right. it is 7:01 and we begin with this fox news alert. at least 24 people are dead, and more than a dozen others are reported missing as those historic wildfires wreak havoc across los angeles county. over 12,000 homes and businesses have been destroyed. >> brian: officials fear it could get worse as stronger winds are expected to return today. more than 40,000 acres already burned. including more than 23 hours from the largest fire, the palisades fire, which is still only 13% contained. and 75% of all structures are gone. >> lawrence: so today the los angeles unified school district is set to reopen most of its schools as governor gavin newsom signs an executive order centered on rebuilding. >> you passing the blame on t

of china. the invading army was rapidly advancing towards the capital of the republic of china. of the dies, the city of nazi leaving behind the burned down villages and thousands of the dead . on december 13th, the japanese occupied son z and states real massacre. for 6 weeks, the invaders exterminated the civilian population. they carried out mass executions, rates, women, and were engaged, been merciless robbery. ruthless competition of 2 officers of the imperial army grocery. at the my guy and 2 yoshi no doubt, gain particular notoriety. they competed with each other as to who would be the fastest to kill $100.00 chinese with us. or this monstrous competition was widely reported in the japanese press. the non being massacre claims the lives of about 300000 people and became one of the largest crimes against humanity in the world history. after world war 2, manufactures advance of the address of the phase trial. however, the commander of the japanese army in the non seeing operation, freeze yasu e to a socket, was able to escape the responsibility due to the interference of th

among the various cyber threat actors, the people's republic of china stands out for its persistence, breadth of operations, and capabilities, and i'll focus the remainder of my testimony here. the threat posed by the prc is nothing new. in 2007, they stole the plans for the f-35. in 2010, they compromised google. in 2015, they hacked opm, and the list goes on. as a result of these and other unprecedented attacks, presidents obama and xi negotiated restrictions on cyber-enabled theft of intellectual property. however, in the wake of that 2015 agreement, the prc retooled, they reorganized. and now they are more dangerous than ever. according to the fbi, their hacking program is now larger than every other major nation combined. and over the past two years, the extent of their strategy has become alarmingly clear. in 2023, microsoft and the us government uncovered that chinese actors associated with the people's liberation army were prepositioning on us critical infrastructure, preparing to launch disruptive or destructive attacks during a crisis or in the prelude to war. that summer, c

we have had the coercion from the people's republic of china, you have seen russia's invasion of ukraine and malign activities from iran, north korea, and terrorist groups. in those same remarks you heard secretary austin talk about the fact that the international community have stood up to president putin, two north korea and iran, and to hamas and hezbollah. secretary austin has been guided by his three priorities of defending the nation, taking care of our people. employing those priorities as the northstar as well as the national defense strategy has helped the department stay focused on the right things when it comes to addressing the challenges we have faced. as you have heard the secretary say in his last several engagements, he could not be more proud of this service members and civilians protecting this nation. >> biggest regret? maj. gen. ryder: i think with -- the secretary feels we have confronted many of the challenges i just laid out and that we have been able to make the country both safer and our alliances stronger. >> a few questions regarding ukraine. what is the curren

senator rubio your top priority must be the people's republic of china's since election in november. this is last two months. the prc hacked our treasury department. continue it's been described as the worst tele-come hack in u.s. hurt. deployed ships to the south china sea to harass our allies in their own territory waters simulated naval blockade the japanese islands the first time. conducted the largest naval drills in decades starting taiwan and broader western pacific. revealed new mobile piers suitable for a taiwan invasion and advanced aircraft and launched the largest am fix you don't say war ship and allowed iran to draw down and ship 3 billion barrels of oil from china. it's obvious he's positions in preparation for war. directed military to prepare to take taiwan in 2027 and folks that's two years. it's true he will invade in 2027 and the also true it's not predetermined. but it should be very concerning to all of us he's given this military that direction. because time and time again, dictators tell people what they're going to do and then they go out and try and do it. th

the people's republic of china. this does is it underlines the power of donald trump over the republican party that he can get so controversial a nominee as pete hegseth through albeit absolutely tiny margin. we have any detail of what kind of defence secretary pete hegseth would to be? we defence secretary pete hegseth would to be?— defence secretary pete hegseth would to be? ~ ~ ., , , , would to be? we know trump sees him as a disruptor_ would to be? we know trump sees him as a disruptor but _ him as a disruptor but disruption comes in many different forms.— disruption comes in many different forms. this is a man who will be — different forms. this is a man who will be an _ different forms. this is a man who will be an instrument - different forms. this is a man who will be an instrument ofl who will be an instrument of change in a department donald trump long railed against. and long been suspicious of, his former defence secretary had his portrait removed atjust a couple days after donald trump took office. tha

you've had the coercion from the people's republic of china. you've seen russia's invasion of ukraine and malign activities from iran, north korea, and terrorist groups. but in those same remarks, you heard secretary austin also talk about the fact that this country and the international community have stood up to president putin, we've stood up to north korea and to iran and to hamas and hezbollah. so during his tenure, secretary austin has been guided by his three priorities of defending the nation, taking care of our people and succeeding thru teamwork and employing those priorities as the north star as well as the national defense strategy has really helped the department stay focused on the right things when it comes to addressing the challenges that we have faced. and as you've heard, the second re-- as you've heard the secretary say in his last several engagement he could not be more proud of the service members and d.o.d. civilians who are protect protected our nation. reporter: biggest regret? general ryder: i think the secretary feel w

we know that the chinese communist party and the people's republic of china has positions, owns ports on both sides of that canal, and that puts us at risk in a potential conflict. so he's thinking about the long term security, and he's starting a negotiation. and that's what this is about. i guarantee you there's a lot more people today thinking about the risks that the russians posed to us through that northwest passage than were just a couple of days ago. >> so i do want to ask you about what you mentioned, that hong kong based company that owns seaports on both sides of the panama canal. but i do want to go back to the question, because trump is putting out there the idea that the u.s. military might be involved in some kind of foreign entanglement over sovereign territory. how do you square that with his campaign promises about keeping the u.s. out of needless wars? >> well, i think what's actually happening is the press asked him if there was anything he was going to take off the table. and as a negotiator, he said, no, nothing is going to be taken off the table because that's t

by force and the help that it receives from iran, the help that it receives from the people's republic of china and from north korea, you worry that there is aligning of the autocratic regimes, and there's a lot of countries in the world who want to follow the west and want to be our friend, and i just hope that we're strong enough and patient enough to work with these countries, and we can counter the autocratic regimes. i hope we can do it friendly. i'm not in favor of military conflict. but we have to preserve our way of life and democratic institution institutions. >> there's a piece of legislation you worked closely with the president on, and you can tell us about, and tell us about how you were able to be successful with that legislation. >> talking about the corruption, president biden said very clearly that corruption is a core national security concern, and corruption is the fuel that allows autocratic regimes to do what they do. we know that mr. putin, who has been a civil servant all of his life is purported to be the wealthiest person in the world. that's through corruption, through

we're thinking about how we are deterring the people's republic of china, when it is a a prioritying in. senator rubio your top priority must be the people's republic of china, since election in november, all of last two months, prchacked our treasury department, including cfius, continuing the worst telecom hack in u.s. history. sabotage important communication cables in asia and europe, deployed ships to south china sea to harass our allies in their own territorial waters, and simulate a naval blockade -- conducted largest naval drills in decade. targets taiwan and broader wester pacific. launched world's largest amphibious warship and allowed iran to draw down 3 billion barrels of oil from a storage site in china, obvious xi jinping is positioning his chess pieces in preparation for war. preparing to take taiwan by 2027, it is true that -- that does not mean he will invade in 2027, but it should be i concerning, time and again dictators tell people what they will do and then that's go outte and dry to do it only thing that dictators respond to is force. strength, peace flew strengt

i will also strive to improve our relations with the soviet union and the peoples republic of china, suring our security while seeking to reduce the risk of conflict. we will continue to express our concern about violations of human rights as we have during this past week, without upsetting our efforts toward friendly relationships with other countries. later, on another program, i will make a much more complete report to you on foreign policy matters. i'd like to tell you now about one of the things that i've already learned in my brief time in office. i've learned that there are many things that a president cannot do. there is no energy policy that we can develop that would do more good than voluntary conservation. there is no economic policy that would do as much as shared faith and hard work, efficiency and in the future of our system. i know that both the congress and the administration as partners in leadership have limited powers. that's the way it ought to be. but in the months in which i have campaigned, prepared to take office and now begun to serve as your president, i foun

suppose tok or outright owned by the people's republic of china, would you make the same argument? wouldn't why not? >> you heo confront a different question whether n gent speaking in the united states has first amendment rights and i't know that the court has addressed that. furthering the search for truth so let's assume we saw that it what if tik tok were not owned by the foreign government but undisputed that tik tok totally controlled by the foreign government? could not do one thing without the approval of government? there are a lot of countriest. that have bornerders, not just politico which is german owned partly owned by the government. will be the reason for drawing the line? is a good reason for saying that, particularly adversary does not have free speech rights in the united states. why would it change if it was simply hidden under corporate structure? >> it is a u.s. speaker. amc movie theater used to be owned by chinese company. they censor any movies cs doesn't like or promote and the reason is where it's conceited, you have a bona fide u.s. company, not a c cutou

immediate crises, we cannot take our eye of the ball of the long term competition for the people's republic of chinaause china is the one country with both the ambition and the potential capacity to really really compete with us across all dimensions. we have not faced a challenge like that in a very long time, perhaps ever because the soviet union did not have some of the economic and other engines that china has. and we had to stay focus on making sure we are investing at home, rallying our allies and pushing back against chinese unfair economic practices and aggressive tactics in places like the south china sea. for me, making sure you have a balance between dealing with the urgent and the immediate while also making the investments in the long term, that is probably the single most important thing for in this current era, for a national security advisor to be focused on. and then, it is urgent, immediate, long-term challenge of time and then there is the epicoal challenge of artificial intelligence. in the time that mike is sitting in the sea, it will transform society's economies and national s

strengthening america's national defense for a modern era of strategic competition with the people's republic of chinatoday's prc is not the soviet bloc of the cold war. our approach to strategic competition cannot succeed if it is merely a warmed over tactic from 40 years ago. but there is no doubt we are in a strategic competition. the prc is the only nation with the well, and increasingly, the wherewithal to remake the international order by combining its economic, diplomatic, technological, and military capabilities to challenge the stable, open, international system that has done so much for so many for so long. that is why ensuring the united states provides our service members with everything they needed to defend the nation, and our interests has been my highest priority since taking office nearly four years ago. i did so in direct support of secretary austin, who shared my concern over this most consequential competition. of course, competition does not mean conflict. no one should desire the global devastation such a war would bring. instead, we want prc leadership to wake up each day, consi

suppose that tiktok were outright owned by the people's republic of china. would you make theam argument. >> is i wouldn't be making the samergument. >> why not? >> because you'd have to confront a different question, whether a foreign govt that was speaking in thed states has first amendment rights, added don't know that that but here we have a speed understand that. i want to see we dra the line. it's true the court has never held a foreign government has free-speech rights and if we were told that i would think it would be because speech by a foreign government particularly one with enormous resources is not protected, allowing that does not serve underlying interests of the first amendment, which ang other things fostering democratic self-government and furthering the search for truth. let's assume we start with that, all right? what if tiktok within noted by the foreign government but it ndisputed that tiktok was totally controlled by foreign government, could not do o thing without the approval of the foreign government? that'srent? >> i do think that

they shared the view that the people's republic of china is expensive. maritime claims in the south china sea are inconsistent with international law as reflected in the united nations convention on the law of the c secretary austin. and administer pro jointly condemned violations of national sovereignty as reflected in united nations general assembly resolution, which deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the russian federation against ukraine and the demands it's complete and unconditional withdrawal from the territory of ukraine put in a twist. sylvia and so publicly denied the statement, saying no such agreement or release had been authorized by indonesia. the incident spark debate over miscommunication and diplomatic protocol raising questions about a curacy authentic on claims. there is no joint statement and no press conference. what is important for me to underline is that our relationship with china is very good. we respect each other. we already have mutual understanding. i convey the in the us, we are close friends with china. we respect america and we seek friendsh

i think twice it could take me to the people's republic of china myself during my may visits to try not together with you while you just need to start with all the large scale projects. are you saying that the projects of these are 3 years of culture? is that the stuff in the esl sound? like an awesome uh, what's the re well has you so that's with you. and so of course i was very happy to meet with you last october and because on that, but i would like to use this occasion to thank you once again for supposing to go to the room that she rushes in, that will you, german shipments and breaks we cross night, our moves to other international platforms such as the united nations, to do it, to be at the s s c o m u j 20 plus pena. we'll just put a good deal on the go together. we aspire. you just have to interior. so i just want fair, most certainly what that person is also actual world order and media. so building a system to the security in the region and your agents and across the world, we can say for sure that's joint work. russia and china has to be digital to mission though, to place a

to americans and dangerous to our energy grid, increased reliance on adversaries the people's republic of china >> it is my obligation if confirmed to be following my obligations under the law . with regards to administrative bridges or act laws set out that guide the way i answer that question, i'm not allowed to prejudge outcomes going into rulemaking . to ensure there is durability of any decisions made at the end of the process where my answer to that question could potentially beused against any type of rule or regulation that is made . i will tell you i have heard concerns from you and many others in this chamber of how important it is to look at rules that are currently on the books. i don't want to sit before you with any type of announcements i am able to make of any rules that are ge going to change upon confirmation. i will tell you i will not prejudge outcomes. however it is my commitment to follow my obligations under the laws set forth by congress to look at decisions made by the united states supreme court and to make sure we are pursuing commonsense pragmatic solutions that make